They found me at seven with my mother...my wolf mother. I will never forget the pain in my heart as I lay cuddled close to my wolf mother's dead body, mourning the loss of her life. My siblings and I were taken away. I would never see them again no matter how much I called for them. I hate them, the humans... They killed my mother, they took away my brothers and sisters and brought me to the door step of a man and a women whom I do not know.

Untamed

The doorbell rings.

"She's here!" Amelia Hanson cries out, racing down the corridor toward the front door.

"Be careful, dear. Remember what the doctors said." Albert Hanson races behind his overly-sensitive wife.

It is August, 1993. Their youngest daughter is returning home, after being lost for five years.

"We have waited very long for this; please do not refuse me one more second of holding my baby."

"The girls are all up stairs?" Albert questions while running his fingers through his smooth dark curls, he then fixes his tie in the mirror.

"Yes, just like Peggy suggested." Amelia said, then checks herself in the mirror also. "You think she will accept us?"

"Yes, my queen, don't worry. We are her parents, and she will know we love her very much," Albert reassured his wife.

"Okay, Ready?" Amelia asks eager to see her daughter.

Albert nods to his wife, who flings the front door of their luxurious mansion open, just as Peggy Hall gears up to ring the doorbell, once more. "Oh my goodness!" Amelia blurts out, while looking down at her seven-years-old daughter, Azura Hanson.

"Mrs. Hanson, please," the social worker pleads as Azura moves behind her, frightened by her own mother. "Hey, sweet girl, do you remember when I showed you pictures and spoke to you about this nice people?" Peggy places her folders, over-stuffed with paperwork on the concrete floor while stooping to speak with Azura. The little girl nods, slowly, and tightens her grip on Peggy's hand. "Do you remember how we say hi?" Azura looked a bit confused by her words. "How do we? Umm..." Peggy struggles to find smaller words to help her understand. She raises her hand and waves to Azura, saying hi, repeatedly, until Azura giggles and waves back. Her stunning, aqua blue eyes disappeared behind blushing cheeks.

As she struggles to mimic the sound she hears coming from Peggy, finally releasing a well fought "hi." Amelia ponders on the shade of blue her daughter’s eyes held. She was born with blue eyes and although both, her husband and she had brown eyes, it was rare but not too rare for her to have them. Ameila assumed they came from her great great grandmother from England, but now they seemed different, the shade of blue with specks of a deeper blue. Ameila decides to keep this to herself, just until she can talk it over with Peggy and her husband in private.

"Very good Azura, I'm so proud of you!" Peggy gives her a hug, gently. "Now let's say hi to your mom and dad." Peggy turns Azura to face her speechless parents, but her eyes will not leave the social worker's face. She eagerly awaits instructions on how to perform every action required of her.

Peggy gives a melodramatic hello to the gape-mouthed Hanson couple. Azura waves at her parents, but continues to keep her focus on her social worker. "Very good beautiful."

"Please, come in." Albert pushes his traumatized and ridged wife out of the way. Amelia stumbles backward, catching her balance with her husband's help.

"Please, come in Azura." He speaks gently to his daughter, fighting the urge to scoop her up into his arms. Albert Hanson is the proud business owner of a highly-lucrative business, supplying new technology to companies around the globe. When their daughter went missing, they fought hard to keep it private, fearing threats from criminal optimists. They knew if she was kidnapped a ransom note would soon follow her disappearance. After one month, they were certain someone in search of money had not kidnapped their daughter.

Peggy nods as she begins moving toward the open door, only to be jerked back by Azura, who refuses to budge. "Sweetie, it's okay. This is your home." She touches Azura's soft, large curls. "We had to shave her head bald. I'll explain later, it's growing in nicely."

"That's quite alright. We are very grateful for all you have done for our baby," Albert replies.

Azura shakes her head no, defiantly, and looks back at the car they arrived in. Peggy quickly understands her fears, remembering how highly responsive she was to her surroundings. "I know this is new, but I'm here for you."

Azura nods in reluctant agreement. She cautiously follows her social worker into the home, clinging onto her hand and skirt. They make their way through the mansion and into a grand living room. As they sit on the sofa, Azura pins herself against Peggy.

"I apologize for this." Peggy struggles to straighten her clothing. She finally gives up; releasing a heart-felt sigh as she gently runs her fingers over Azura's precious head. "This is a lot for her in one day."

"I apologize for my wife." Albert looks back at Amelia, who is walking like a zombie toward them. He swiftly approaches her, takes her by the arm and pulls her into an out-of-sight area of the room.

"What has gotten into you?" Albert scolds under his breath.

"Did you see her eyes, honey do you remember them being that shade of blue and the specks...are they sure she's all right?" Ameila replied.

"Sweetie, I just need you to be her mother right now, please that's all that I am asking," Albert begs.

Ameila nodded slowly and tried to push her troubled thoughts behind her. "Okay," she whispered.

Peggy watches as Azura stands and peeks around the corner, curiously. "Are you worried, sweetie? It's okay, everything is alright." Peggy begins wondering if maybe this should have been thought out more.

Azura rushes back to Peggy's side, clinging to her as Mr. and Mrs. Hanson return. "My apologies" Amelia breaks her silence as she gingerly enters the room carrying a stuffed animal. Azura's eyes brighten as she finds interest in the toy her mother is holding. "Hello, Azura, I'm your mommy. Do you remember Mr. Popples?" She holds the small, stuffed, brown bear in front of her daughter.

"Do you remember him, Azura?" Peggy feels Azura's grip lighten.

The bear seems to pique her interest as she slowly reaches for it. Everyone does their best to control their excitement as Azura takes the toy from her mother. Amelia wants so badly to hold her youngest daughter and tell her how sorry she is for failing her as a parent. She wants to let her know how much she missed her, and tell her she will never let her out of her sight, ever again.

At the age of seven, rescuers find a feral child living amongst a pack of wolves, in the wilds of Canada. When she was two, her family took a vacation to Algonquin Park, in Ontario, Canada. On the last day of their trip, the family of nine was preoccupied, packing and cleaning up the campsite. Everyone assumed Azura Hanson was in the RV, napping. Her mother, Amelia Hanson, insisted they do a head count before her husband, Albert Hanson, drove off. It was then they discovered Azura was missing.

For the next five years, Mr. and Mrs. Hanson searched for their lost child. They never gave up, even when everyone else did. Every year, they revisited the campsite, in Algonquin Park, spending countless hours searching for signs of their daughter. No one knows how the wolves found her; all they do know is she became one of their own. Azura roamed around freely, under the watchful eye of her wolf mother. At night, she would gather all her offspring, including Azura. With the warmth of her body, the mother wolf would keep them all warm. Azura was fed and kept alive by animals most people feared in the wild. Her heart loved being a part of the pack. Everything she needed to know and understand about life, she learned from them.

Azura vividly remembers strolling through the woods, collecting berries, and playing close to her pack when a hunter came across them. She must have frightened him, since he instantly lifted his shotgun and pointed it directly at her. The wolf mother lunged at him, the gun fired, killing her, leaving Azura and the new offspring orphaned. The hunter did not wait around to be discovered by other wolves, when he realized it was a mother wolf. Azura cried with her siblings. She wailed, holding onto her wolf mother's fur, begging her to wake up. Hours later, the hunter returned with a search party and a full rescue team. Azura and the young pups were captured. The wolf pups were taken to a wild-life refuge, and Azura was admitted into a nearby hospital, in Canada.

When her parents came to identify her, they could hardly believe their eyes. Her mother knew instantly this was their long, lost daughter, but her father needed to see the results of a DNA test. Azura could not speak any understandable words. She had an array of grunting noises to communicate her wants and needs. At night, she would howl, hoping to hear back from her pack and be reunited with them. For the first six months, she refused everything human. Her hair stayed in one tangled clump, because she fought off the staff when they attempted to groom and care for her.

When Peggy Hall first began working with Azura, she feared she would never be reformed, or reach an acceptable social level to be re-entered into society. However, she refused to give up on her. Finding a way to communicate and reason was imperative to the success of reforming Azura. Reluctantly, her parents agreed to let her stay in Canada, with Peggy Hall, in hopes that when she was ready to return home she would be in a state of mind they could handle.

To everyone's amazement, she learned quickly. Although, she needs constant attention, patience, and structure, Azura is coming along nicely.

"She loves the outdoors. Maybe one of the girls can give her a tour?" Peggy suggested after Azura seemed to settle down for a bit.

"Yes, yes of course," Albert replied standing up from the couch where he was seated and leaving to fetch one of his older daughters. He returned shortly with Arlene. She approached Azura gently who seemed to respond to her quickly. She allowed her older sister to take her by the hand and lead her through the house and out to the back yard.

Peggy knew that Mr. and Mrs. Hanson had questions and she had a few questions of her own. "Your daughter is a beautiful and loving soul," Peggy began. "However, there are some things you must be aware of concerning her well-being."

"Is she sick?" Ameila questioned.

"No, no. Azura is just...different," Peggy could not find the perfect words no matter how many times she replayed it in her mind.

"Just tell us," Albert insisted.

"Azura's eyes are..." Peggy paused then sighed. "Mr. and Mrs. Hanson, it seems that your daughter has evolved and in some cases regressed to an animal like mentality. Her eyes have the ability to see in the dark." she paused as Ameila gasped and placed a hand over her chest. "I'm sorry, is this too much?" Peggy questioned.

"No please, we must know. My wife is just dramatic," Albert said while patting his wife's back.

"I'm not being dramatic. Do you hear what she is saying," Amelia protested.

"She's our little girl and she has endured something that would easily kill any child. We have to be grateful." Albert replied to his wife. He then nodded at Peggy to continue.

"Your daughter...I don't know how much you know about modern science and DNA or genetics, but it's impossible to just suddenly develop eyes like that." Peggy said.

"What do you mean?" Albert asked.

"She was born with the ability to see in the dark." Peggy answered.

"What are you saying?" Amelia asked.

"Your daughter is special," Peggy replied. "Most areas of her life have been carefully reformed, and she is now able to re-enter society. However, one area of her life is misunderstood."

"And what area is that?" Albert questioned.

"She has a bit of an anger problem and an intense rage and animosity towards people. I'm working with her and so far she is doing well, but I would feel better if you would allow me to stay an extra two weeks to help her adapt to her new surroundings." Peggy explained.

"Absolutely not." Ameila replied.

"I'm just afraid that she will regress," Peggy added.

"Mom!" Arlene called running into the house, holding her hand.

"What’s wrong?" Amelia asked running towards her daughter.

BOOK: Feral Revised (Weekend Treats Collection)

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